Czech Republic

Photo: Karpat forward Jesse Puljujarvi (L) and Omsk forward Dmitri Sokolov (R) are among the top forwards out of Europe for the 2016 NHL Draft (courtesy of Minas Panagiotakis/Getty Images and Dennis Pajot/Getty Images)

The 2015 NHL Draft has come and gone. While most NHL teams and their fans are still pondering the possibilities of their new assets heading into the future, the next draft class from Europe is preparing itself for a big 2015-16 season, which at the moment has a number of extremely fascinating talents that scouts are very excited to see starting next month at the Ivan Hlinka Memorial Tournament in Bratislava, Slovakia and Breclav, Czech Republic. While some of these players may eventually wind up in North America as soon as this winter, fans may just see U.S. wunderkind Auston Matthews in a pro European jersey this winter, as well. Read more»

Photo: The New Jersey Devils top pick from the 2015 NHL Draft, center Pavel Zacha of the OHL’s Sarnia Sting, took part in the Devils’ development camp this past week (courtesy of Rich Graessle/Icon Sportswire)

It seemed like the moment the entire crowd at the AmeriHealth Pavilion were anticipating at Saturday’s Red-White scrimmage. Pavel Zacha, the New Jersey Devils‘ 2015 first round pick, retrieved a loose puck at center ice and appeared to have a clear breakaway on goal. Suddenly the whistle blew to signal an offside on one of Zacha’s teammates who was still in the offensive zone. While the fans serenaded the referee with a chorus of boos, Zacha bent over disappointed with a smirk on his face. Read more»

Photo: Kladno goaltender and Boston Bruins prospect Daniel Vladar was one of four goalies chosen out of the Czech Republic in the 2015 NHL Draft (courtesy of Jeff Vinnick/NHLI via Getty Images)

Despite a year that didn’t see the Czech Republic get much done internationally at the junior level, the 2015 NHL Draft saw a total of 11 Czech players taken by NHL teams, albeit the top three of Pavel Zacha (6th overall), Jakub Zboril (13th), and Filip Chlapik (48th) having spent this past season strutting their stuff in North America. Read more»

Perhaps the most anticipated NHL Draft in the past decade is now in the books. The 2015 draft class of 211 players, led by top talents Connor McDavid and Jack Eichel, have found new homes in the NHL and will begin their journey to a pro career beginning with the coming summer development camps put on by the 30 NHL clubs. Read more»

Photo: Pardubice forward and 2015 prospect Michael Spacek (#21) played most of the 2014-15 season in the Czech Extraliga, posting five goals and 12 points in 44 games (courtesy of Dennis Pajot/Getty Images)

The 2015 NHL Draft is looking like a pretty decent one for players born and raised in the Czech Republic, although some of the best didn’t actually spend the season playing in their native country. Read more»